Modern continuous-time portfolio optimization
How should we invest in a world of uncertainty, sustainability challenges, and responsibility toward future generations?
Time & Location
27 Mar 2026, 10:00 – 11:30
Online
About the event
Event Description
In contrast to the well-known static, one-period Markowitz mean-variance approach, modern continuous-time portfolio optimization builds on stochastic process and the so-called Itô-calculus. The optimization methods used are based on stochastic control methods and the HJB-Equation.
During this event, Ralf Korn will give an introduction to the continuous-time setting, will give a very short and accessible derivation of the HJB-Equation and will apply it to the classical Merton problem. Then, he will turn to optimization problems that consider two of todays most popular problems: first, the optimal investment under sustainability constraints and second, a portfolio approach that cares for intergenerational justice.
Time: March 27, 10:00-11:30 (with two short breaks as 90 minutes online is simply hard to enjoy ...) There will also be time for discussion afterwards for those who have special questions and interest
How to join the event: The event will done via MS Teams. Join via the link below.
Microsoft Teams meeting
Join: https://teams.microsoft.com/meet/3724248683290?p=Lew0OJ5VzagBzANPrl
Meeting ID: 372 424 868 329 0
Passcode: Hk6j2E8y
Speaker Bio
Ralf Korn is head of the the financial mathematics group at the RPTU Kaiserslautern-Landau (formerly TU Kaiserslautern) and founder and longtime head of the department “Financial Mathematics” at Fraunhofer Institute for Industrial Mathematics (ITWM). He received his PhD in Mathematics in 1993 at Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz. Since 1999 he is professor of financial mathematics and stochastic control at the Dept. Mathematics of RPTU Kaiserslautern-Landau. He supervised 60 PhD students until today. His main areas of research are continuous-time finance, also with applications in life insurance mathematics, numerical methods in stochastics, especially Monte Carlo methods. He has been head of the DGVFM, the German association for actuarial and financial mathematics. He has been a member of the board of DAV, the German association of actuaries, and an associated member of SAV, the Suisse actuarial society.